<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>wait by oldrival</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24616585">wait</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/oldrival/pseuds/oldrival'>oldrival</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pocket Monsters SPECIAL | Pokemon Adventures, Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Ruby &amp; Sapphire &amp; Emerald | Pokemon Ruby Sapphire Emerald Versions, pokespe</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Mutual Pining, rubys pov, the classic post mirage island confession</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 09:55:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,912</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24616585</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/oldrival/pseuds/oldrival</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>hoes be like yes i pretended i forgot about confessing our love to one another ...... anyway how about a kiss?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Franticshipping, Odamaki Sapphire | Sapphire Birch &amp; Ruby, Odamaki Sapphire | Sapphire Birch/Ruby, Ruby/Sapphire, rusa - Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>24</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>wait</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>don't have to read oras - set after volume 29 if timeline matters 2 u</p><p>wrote this for rusa day.... but it took a lot longer than i expected &gt;______&lt;</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Something outside smacks the window pane loud enough to rouse Ruby from his slumber. He pays the disturbance no mind, not bothering to worry about what it was. Blinking blearily in an attempt to read the clock at the side of his bed, he pulls his covers up closer to his chin. It’s just begun to feel like summer in Hoenn, so the layer of covers he’s wrapped up in are more of a comfort thing than a necessity these nights. Ruby’s pushing his bangs out of his eyes (he really needs a haircut) and squinting in vain at the clock when there’s an abrupt rattling from near the window. Maybe there’s a robber outside, climbing into his room to steal his contest ribbons. The whole insane grown men waking up Hoenn’s ancient beasts so they could fight each other to decide who got to destroy the region deal did land him some media traction, so there’s bound to be some jealous crook out there who’d heard about him and wants to steal his prized hard-earned ribbons. The window rattles again and suddenly the thought of an actual robber scratching at his window has Ruby much more awake. What would he do? Battle the crazy insomniac thug? Not in his bedroom! There wouldn’t be nearly enough space for a battle and his room would end up absolutely in shambles. He’ll just have to face the robber and maybe courteously ask to do battle outside. Slowly, so he’s as quiet as possible, Ruby rolls over so he’s facing the window currently being ambushed. He blinks. There’s a figure crouched on the tree branch nearest the window who appears to be messing with the windowsill and … trying to pry it open? Yikes. Ruby hopes he’s dreaming but the very real pool of furious anxiety bubbling up in his stomach tells him he’s unfortunately very much wide awake. He sits up, heart pounding away in his chest, hoping the figure will realize he’s awake and just flee. But, hold on, wait a minute; the silhouette ransacking his window is recognizably lithe … and lean … and looks a little too steady clinging to the tree branch to be a crazed robber seeking out his contest ribbons. Easing himself up from his bed, Ruby slinks gingerly over towards the window for a closer look at the intruder, just to be sure it’s who he thinks it is. His suspicions are confirmed when Sapphire, drenched in shadowy moonlight, plasters her palm against the glass, tapping it to get his attention. Ruby opens the lock and pushes the window up with a relieved yawn. </p><p>“Finally,” Sapphire hisses, grabbing the windowsill and clambering inside from her perch on the tree branch. Ruby’s about to make an instinctive snarky comment about how he shouldn’t exactly be expecting her to be climbing through his window in the middle of the night, but as Sapphire turns to shut the window behind her, the pale moonlight illuminates her face and Ruby sees that her eyes are wet and swollen. </p><p>“Sapphire,” he addresses her, sternly, “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”</p><p>Her gaze is lowered as she turns back around to face him. Her lips part like she’s about to explain the reason behind her late night incursion through his bedroom window, but then her bottom lip trembles and the tears start falling. Ruby wraps his arms around her, letting her lean into him. He’s grown since the ancient beasts’ duel, so now Sapphire’s chin lands against his shoulder when they embrace. Stroking her back, Ruby tenses for a second when Sapphire’s shaky hands fist his shirt at his back. </p><p>“Sapph, what happened?” he tries again, stepping back to survey her and figure out if she’s hurt somewhere. Surely she’s able-bodied if she climbed up a tree and hoisted herself through the window into his bedroom. He’s holding her shoulders steady as the tears trickle down her cheeks and he’s kicking himself because he just can’t figure out what’s causing them. </p><p>“I, um,” Sapphire sniffles, coughing quietly into her hand so she doesn’t wake his parents asleep downstairs, “I had a nightmare.”</p><p>Ruby’s face falls in realization. He knows all too well what those nightmares are like, post-ancient beast struggle. The multitude of nightmares he’d had as a small child following the Salamance attack pale in comparison to the hellish torture sleeping with the weight of an entire region on their shoulders had dumped on both of them. Drifting off could result in hypothetical nightmarish visions of anything relating to the past conflict; what if Archie or Maxie had won? What if he’d turned down Marge and the Blue Orb had taken over Sapphire? What if he hadn’t had Celebi, his trump card, to bring back his dad and Steven and Marge and everyone else lost in the fray? He’d learned over time that sometimes sleepless nights were better than reliving it all over again in his dreams. </p><p>“It’s okay,” he murmurs, hands sliding to Sapphire’s back so he can pull her close again. He really doesn’t have a clue how to console her because he endures the very same torment himself. Ruby feels her take a deep breath in the crook of his neck, and then feels the tickle of her lips moving, warm against his skin, “Ruby … Can - Can I sleep here tonight?”</p><p>His face heats up then. He chastises himself inside because it’s not weird or embarrassing or anything - they’re close childhood friends, after all. They’d slept awfully close to each other on Mirage Island. It’s just platonically sharing a bed. It’s fine. He realizes almost too late that he’d better give her an answer instead of just standing there blushing like an idiot. </p><p>“Um, sure, yes. Of course,” Ruby mumbles, thankful it’s the middle of the night and Sapphire probably won’t recall the exact awkward words he’d stumbled over as he answered in the morning. Sapphire sniffles again, yawning against him. Ruby doesn’t know where they should really go from here (to bed, he supposes after a moment of just holding her). He stumbles over to the side of his bed, Sapphire clinging to his side. </p><p>“Do you wanna talk about it?” he asks, tossing the covers aside before laying down on his back. Humming concernedly like she’s not sure whether she wants to or not, Sapphire crawls onto the mattress next to him and buries herself into his side. The heat in his face burns, spreading down like a wildfire through his neck and filling his chest. It’s fine. Sapphire is tired and in emotional distress at the moment and probably isn’t sure of what she’s doing, which makes their rather intimate proximity totally fine. But then she snakes an arm across his chest and pushes her face up against his neck and Ruby’s sure he’ll spontaneously combust any moment now. </p><p>“It’s okay now, ’cuz you’re here … with me. I don’t have to worry about you goin’ off on your own again an’ leavin’ me behind,” Sapphire murmurs into his skin. The warm feeling in Ruby’s chest swells but at the same time her words send an icy pang of regret shooting through him as he’s reminded of the choice he’d made during the confrontation with Hoenn’s legendaries. </p><p>He barely sleeps a wink that night because he’s left wishing he could just kiss it all better. Press his lips to hers so he wouldn’t have to stumble over his words while he tried to tell her that yes, he did remember Mirage Island. He did remember what he’d told her after locking her in Wallace’s aircar. He’d distract her from Archie, from Maxie, from the ancient beasts, from the orbs, from everything with lazy hands and lazy kisses. But here he was, lying in his bed with her cuddled up to his side, her trauma-filled head resting on his chest, and they’d convinced themselves they were just friends. </p><p> </p><p>Ruby jolts awake to a slap in the face (literally). He blinks the sleep out of his eyes, not remembering where or when he’d fallen asleep. A cool breeze tickles his skin and the air smells earthy and damp. Dark stone walls curve up and into his field of vision. The hard floor lets him know he’s been napping in Sapphire’s (well, all the plushies and decorations have dictated that it’s really Ruby’s as much as it is Sapphire’s) secret hideout where they’d first reunited after Ruby had moved back to Hoenn. Turning his head to the side, he squints as golden sunlight blinds him for a moment - and then he’s able to take in the golden sunset through the cave’s entrance. If he stares at the same spot long enough and quiets his breathing, there seems to be a faint drizzle shrouding the sinking sun, pattering against the cave’s stone exterior. Ruby’s about to sit up to stretch his cramped muscles out when he realizes there’s a weight draped over him. A blanket? It’s warm … but it’s also moving (and snoring a little). He peers down at his body sprawled on the stone and almost jumps out of his skin when he registers his own limbs are entangled with Sapphire’s. Upon further inspection he realizes, relieved, that she’s still definitely sound asleep. One of her hands is twisted in the dark hair at the nape of his neck and her other hand is pressed against his chest. He must have awoken when she accidentally hit him in the face reaching for his hair. As his body gradually reaches a more conscious state, a tingling numbness fizzles in the limbs sandwiched between Sapphire’s own. Ruby’s not particularly sure if it’s possible to escape the predicament currently endangering his blood circulation without Sapphire coming to and making their very intimate sleeping arrangement even more embarrassingly quixotic than it already is. However, the longer Ruby stares at her sleeping face, so peaceful and free of worry, cheeks slightly flushed, lips parted, long eyelashes unmoving, the more he thinks maybe he doesn’t want to move at all. The numbness in his limbs is just a sacrifice he’ll have to deal with for the view. </p><p>Ruby’s reminded of the first time they met, eighty days before Sapphire’s birthday, in the same place. Sapphire’s curled up on the stone just like she was after he’d defeated that pesky Seviper, patched her up, and oh-so-carefully took her measurements so she’d get rid of that smelly leaf getup. His nose wrinkles in disgust as he recalls her nonexistent respect for her aesthetic appearance before they’d met. He can’t even fathom it. But now, laying silent in his arms, her breathing relaxed, Ruby’s so sure she’s the most beautiful sight he’s ever laid eyes on (and that’s saying something, considering how many contests he’s been to). There’s that icy pang in his chest again when he wishes he could just tell her that somehow. It’d be so easy to press a delicate kiss to her forehead; nothing stood in the way in the meager space between them but soft breaths and Ruby’s emotional constipation. He’d get there eventually. Ruby shuts his eyes once more, drifting off into a dreamland where he has the courage to tell Sapphire exactly what she means to him.</p><p> </p><p>Ruby’s starting to lose count of how many times he’s been woken up by his childhood best friend lately. He opens his eyes one especially sweltering summer night to Sapphire standing over him, shaking him impatiently. Glaring down at him, she huffs, “Took ya long enough. Geez.”</p><p>“Sapphire?” Ruby mumbles, not quite fully awake. He squints in the direction of the clock behind her. He thinks it says one-thirty something. The brunette crawls over him, flopping down next to him on the empty side of the bed. Is he sweating? He wonders if Sapphire shut the window on her way in - the air is heavy and hot. Before he can ask her what she’s doing in his bed this time, she clarifies the intention behind her latest venture into his sheets. </p><p>“I told you my air conditioning broke, right? Remember, I freaked out ‘cuz Emerald’s weird friend, the Trick Master - the New Mauville guy - was in the house fixin’ it. Well, he didn’t get it done yet. Dad’s hoggin’ the only fan we got ‘n I can’t sleep ‘cuz I’m sweatin’ buckets. But I know you got AC, so …” Sapphire explains, her voice a raspy whisper. The hand not propping her head up had subconsciously found the hem of Ruby’s shirt during her rambling and she’d begun toying with it between her fingers. Ruby smiles, recognizing a habit she probably has no idea about; she loved to fidget with anything she could get her hands on. </p><p>“You might as well just live here, huh?” he murmurs, only realizing what he’d just implied after the question had marinated for a moment in the humid night air. </p><p>“I’m sure Dad wouldn’t mind. He’d understand,” Sapphire giggles. The familiar warm feeling bubbles up in Ruby’s chest as he blushes (it’s obviously just the heat); he hadn’t expected Sapphire to reply as seriously as she did. She’d normally just get all flustered and change the subject. He hadn’t even realized what he was saying. But of course it was just a joke - they were too young for that kind of thing. Ruby doesn’t know what in the world to say next, so he blurts out the next thing that forms on the tip of his tongue, “Even if I have AC, there’s too much body heat in here now. We’ll still be hot.”</p><p>Sapphire sighs. They’re silent for a moment, and so is the night. </p><p>The rhythm of Sapphire’s fingers fiddling with his shirt slows as her eyes flutter shut. Ruby’s close to drifting off too, until one of Sapphire’s fingers brushes his stomach. He squeaks, the tips of his ears burning. The brief touch is light (accidental, of course) but soft and warm against his skin. </p><p>“Ruby?” Sapphire mumbles, her face half-buried in a pillow. Resting underneath his shirt against his skin, her fingers stop in their tracks altogether. Ruby wants to just say screw it all; screw the heat, screw his parents sleeping unbothered downstairs, screw the enduring uncertainty hanging between himself and Sapphire and just pounce on the girl lying oblivious (or maybe not - he can’t tell whether she’s given up on them yet or not, but he still holds out unrelenting hope) in the sheets next to him. He so badly wants her lips, pale pink and chapped, the lips he’d seen grin up at him in relief, in excitement, in admiration so many times, to be right up against his own. He wants to kiss her everywhere. Her forehead, her nose, her shoulders, other places he really shouldn’t be thinking about while she’s right here next to him with her ridiculously adept eyesight. His hands on her, her hands on him. Man, he’d like her to dominate him at something besides battling for once. Ruby’s beginning to think that maybe just leaning in and going for it isn’t such a bad idea - if Sapphire happened to react negatively he’d just say the heat got to him, that’s all - when all of a sudden she seems to realize what she’s done to elicit the strangled noise out of him, pulling her hand back tight against her chest and angling her gaze deliberately up at the ceiling, repeating, “Ruby? Did you … uh, are you okay?”</p><p>A strained affirmative noise escapes Ruby’s throat. He’s praying desperately to all the legendary deities out there (not like they’d listen to him - he of all people should realize that after the ancient beast catastrophe) that Sapphire hasn’t noticed how bright red his face is in the moonlight.</p><p>They both have a terribly tough time falling asleep that night. </p><p> </p><p>“Ruby?” </p><p>There’s a curt knock at the door of the dressing room he’s occupying. He’s serving as a stand-in contest judge in Verdanturf; someone had fallen ill and the quiet little town wouldn’t pass up the media attention Ruby, one of the teen protectors of Hoenn who’d conquered the region’s contests in eighty days, serving as a judge would bring. </p><p>“Come in,” he tells his visitor, pushing his floppy bangs around in the mirror. He wished he’d had a little more notice before he’d had to step in; he needs a haircut now more than ever. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to attempt to give his mane a little trim in the few minutes he’s got left before his spotlight debut as a contest judge. </p><p>“Wow. Flashy,” green eyes scrutinize him up and down from the doorway, “Did you pick that out? What am I saying? Of course you did. Very interesting outfit, Judge Ruby.”</p><p>Ruby scoffs. He doesn’t even have to look - he’d recognize the owner of that nasally sardonic voice any day. </p><p>“Thanks, Emerald, I really appreciate it. You know, you’re one to talk with your croissant-hair and ridiculously tall platform shoes.”</p><p>Traipsing further into the dressing room, Emerald flops down on a muted sofa, “Ouch. Whatever. Actually, I was thinking about just letting my hair down for a change … and, well, because hairspray is expensive.”</p><p>Ruby laughs. </p><p>“You should let me mess around with your hair one day … I’m sure I can figure out something better than the abomination you’ve got going on now. No offense. Oh, you should enter a contest too! I’ll make you something to wear. You’ll win with looks alone,” the younger boy’s giggling escalates at Emerald’s sour expression glowering at him in the mirror. </p><p>“After seeing your outfit today, I think I’ll stay far away from contest halls for a while,” Emerald clears his throat, looking around the room for a moment, “Well, look, the real reason I paid you a visit was ‘cause I think it’s high time I have a talk with you.”</p><p>Ruby snorts, continuing to coat his bottom eyelashes with mascara, thinking Emerald’s still teasing him.</p><p>“Ruby, I’m serious,” Emerald says, glaring even harder at Ruby in the mirror. Emerald’s fiddling with his sleeve. </p><p>“Okay, okay. I’m listening.”</p><p>“It’s … it’s about Sapphire.”</p><p>Ruby’s chest tightens. He blinks, a little too hard, and now there’s black smeared under his eyes. When people close to the younger duo, whether it’s Wallace and Winona or Emerald himself, want to “talk” to him about Sapphire, it’s usually a signal that the following conversation will definitely not be in Ruby’s favor. Gaze aimed at the floor now, Emerald continues, “She - Um, Sapphire kinda blew up at me yesterday. It’s really not anything new, actually; it happens every so often. Anyway, she’s just really frustrated, with, um, you.”</p><p>“What? What do you mean? What did I do?” Ruby cuts in, turning from the mirror to stare straight at Emerald. The green-eyed boy coughs. </p><p>“It’s more like what you didn’t do, really … I’m sure you’re aware, but she told me about, y’know, the whole Mirage Island, locking her in the aircar, the dramatic discarding of the hat stuff. But, my point is, Sapphire coming to me all the time and blowing up in my face about how, y’know, well, you kinda just pretend nothing happened but at the same time you act kinda weird sometimes and she doesn’t know what to think and it’s annoying is, like … I dunno. Not good? I just - I know you like her, and she obviously likes you, so I think it’s about time you did something, because she won’t listen to me when I tell her to make a move.”</p><p>Ruby feels frozen. He feels broken, at the same time, like someone had frozen him and then hit him so hard he shattered into a million tiny pieces he couldn’t possibly start to pick up. He opens his mouth, trying to find the words to respond to Emerald, when the intercom mounted on the wall crackles to life, “Ruby? We need you backstage, please.”</p><p>Ruby blinks. Turning back to the mirror, he rubs hastily under his eyes and runs a hand through his bangs. He doesn’t know how he’s going to go judge a contest in front of eager participants and a judgy crowd (as contest audiences are) when his head and heart are full of Sapphire. </p><p>Emerald stands up, trudging over to Ruby to reach up and pat his back a little sheepishly, “Ruby … I’m only telling you this now because yesterday Sapphire seemed - I dunno, she was … it was different. She seemed really disheartened. Like she was giving up. I didn’t know what to say. I’m telling you this for your own good, because I know there’s something special between you, something I’ve never seen before, and I don’t want to see either of you give up on it. Just - please - trust me when I tell you that you’ve gotta do something. Anything to just let her know you feel the same, because I think she’s about to let it go.”</p><p> </p><p>The southern wind blows Ruby’s overgrown jet black bangs from his forehead. He’s airborne, clinging to Sapphire’s Tropius’ neck on his way home to Littleroot. He’s mentally drained after sitting through a contest while his thoughts revolved solely around Emerald’s words regarding Sapphire. The brief journey south would be a rather peaceful one had his stomach not been in knots because of the distraught girl; the wind wasn’t too strong and the sun sliding past the horizon paints the clouds with a beautiful spray of pinks and oranges. The PokéNav in his pocket buzzes, distracting him from the whirlwind of anxious thoughts fleeting about inside him. Fishing the device out carefully so it doesn’t fly out of his grip, he opens it to a message from none other than Sapphire. The bright screen reads:</p><p>“Meet me at base when you get back !!!”</p><p>His heart sinks. It’s not that he doesn’t want to see her; he’s just worried that this will end up being the confrontation where everything finally falls apart. He’s heading home knowing they’ll get into an argument. And he hates when they argue. Even if it’s to prove an important point or keep her out of danger, he hates it. He hates when she’s not smiling, laughing, content with the world. More often than not, it’s his fault when she’s upset. Guilt bubbles up inside him, and he just can’t suppress it - he never knows how to reverse the damage he’s done before it’s already too late. Maybe Sapphire finally giving up on him was for the best. </p><p>Ruby peers down at the deep green land below. Oldale is flying away behind them and the yellowy-amber roofs of Littleroot’s humble homes pop against the expansive foliage. He’s sure the long-necked, leafy creature beneath him already knows to land near the secret hideout; the calm-natured beast would disappear deep into his forest home behind the outcropping after they land. </p><p>Anticipation flares up in his chest when the Tropius touches down onto the stone outside the cave shrouded in foliage. Ruby bites his lip. He doesn’t have to go in. He doesn’t absolutely have to walk straight into the minefield he knows will blow him up and tear him apart. He doesn’t have to listen to Emerald, he doesn’t have to make things right and finally tell her he didn’t actually forget what they’d said to each other before plunging into the ancient beasts’ brawl, he doesn’t have to face the rejection he knows is a very real possibility waiting to demolish him in the shadowy depths of the cave where they’d first met after so long. He could walk away right now, before it all starts. But he doesn’t. He takes a deep breath, straightens his spine, and struts into the mouth of the cave with his feelings threatening to drag him right back out.</p><p>It’s empty. </p><p>The only living soul in the hideout was him. Squinting, Ruby blinks around in the dark, wishing he’d get over how he looks in his glasses and carry them with him for once so he could see a little better. He’s definitely alone. Had she set him up? Why would she have done that? That wasn’t like her at all. Ruby decides she just hasn’t arrived yet and goes to rest his weary, aching body on the nearest piece of furniture while he waits. </p><p>After enough time has passed for his restless fingers to encounter and abuse a loose thread somewhere amongst the cushions, light footsteps on the stone outside approach the cave. Sapphire’s silhouette appears in the mouth of the cave, blocking out the last of the sunlight disappearing beneath the cliffside. Every muscle in Ruby’s body tenses up. He’s petrified. </p><p>“Hey,” Sapphire says, her tone strangely nonchalant, “I just wanted to tell you I’m leavin’.”</p><p>Ruby’s mouth falls open as the younger girl strides over to stand in front of him. His spine straightens, the muscles in his legs shaking as if he can’t decide whether or not to stand up. </p><p>“What? Why? Where are you going?”</p><p>“Mmm, I think I’ve decided on Sinnoh. I know next to nothin’ about that place, so I think it would be good for me to go conquer all the gyms there. Maybe even beat the champion, too.”</p><p>He’s frozen. Since when had she planned all of this out? Emerald mentioned nothing about Sapphire wanting to just up and leave. She couldn’t leave. She couldn’t go to some faraway region they’d barely heard about all by herself. </p><p>“When did you decide all this? Why didn’t you tell me? You’re going by yourself? Without me?”</p><p>Sapphire pulls a face like the answer to his rapid-fire redundant questions is obvious. She shrugs. </p><p>“I dunno,” then she squints, hands balling into fists as she glowers down at him, “Why should you care? Why would you wanna be stuck with me in some distant place where I’m the only one you know? That’s why I’m goin’ away. So you don’t have to deal with me anymore.”</p><p>Ruby sucks a breath in through his nose. He’s pretty sure that’s the last one he’ll ever take. Sure, “heartbreak” is just a metaphorical term, but if hearts could literally break, he’d guess that’s what the abrupt pain shooting through his chest is. He’d thought she was the one who didn’t want to deal with him anymore, not the other way around. Sapphire isn’t done, though, “When have you ever wanted to go anywhere with me? You’ve always made a big deal of everything whenever we’ve gone anywhere together and blamed anything that went wrong on me. But then sometimes it’s fine, like gettin’ all close an’ holdin’ my hand to get all the way down to the Cave of Origin an’ trainin’ with me to beat the legendaries an’ learnin’ the ultimate moves with me. But I guess that’s only ‘cuz the whole region was at stake, huh? ‘Cuz we had to save other people. That’s the only reason you put up with me.”</p><p>There must be a draft escaping in somewhere because Ruby’s eyes are very much watering now. Crossing her arms against her chest, Sapphire stares down at him, waiting for an answer, bottom lip trembling as she fights to maintain her furious exterior shell. Ruby doesn’t know what kind of answer to give her. He doesn’t even know where to start. He can’t find the words to even begin to convey everything seething through his body. Maybe he shouldn’t try using words, then. He’s got an idea. It’s risky, it’s precarious, it’s something neither of them have remotely any kind of experience with (besides in multitudes of daydreams, of course) - but he’s sure she’ll at least get the message, whether it goes well or not. </p><p>Standing up, limbs shakier than they'd been backstage at his first contest, Ruby grabs Sapphire by the shoulders, shuts his eyes, and hopes he’ll hit the target (or at least get close) when he leans in and finally takes the chance he’s always had waiting right in front of him. </p><p>Their lips meet at last and sure, it’s a little rocky, but Ruby’s never felt anything better. Sapphire all but bursts from his tentative grip on her shoulders to fling her arms around his neck and tug him close. The pace she sets is frantic, hurried, and Ruby can tell she’s been waiting for this moment for much too long. He’s never felt this immense rush of relief before; winning Hoenn’s last hyper-rank contest ribbon and watching his petrified seniors break free from their stone prisons are some of the only times that compare to the adrenaline and pure love coursing through him in this moment. Ruby’s trying to figure out where to put his hands again when he realizes he’s getting a little bit too light-headed to stay on his feet. </p><p>“Sapphire, listen,” he breathes, leaning back into her arms and steadying himself, “We’ll go conquer Sinnoh together. Maybe not in eighty days this time, though … I think it would be nice to sightsee and enjoy ourselves a little more.”</p><p>Sapphire’s face lights up. The azure depths of her eyes gleam as she beams at him, canines peeking out from her toothy grin. Ruby doesn’t think he’s ever seen her this ecstatic. Before he can finish catching his breath, she’s pouncing, knocking him backward so he falls where he’d been sitting not too long ago. Months of pent-up yearning driving their frenzied, lovestruck bodies closer, her lips find his own again. He’s never been happier.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>i hope u enjoyed &lt;333 feel free to talk abt pksp with meeee :.)</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>